Narwhals are the new owls!

Isn't this narwhal just the cutest thing? I have always had a fondness for narwhal. I love them so much I think my kids should all make narwhal projects from now until the end of time. Or.....maybe this statement is just merely silly. Why would my students want to make projects about something that is important to ME? Why wouldn't they want to make art projects about things they love? As a teacher who is fortunate to see many other art teachers teaching on a regular basis I often find myself asking the question - where has the creativity gone?

It's gone to the birds. I think I may scream if I see another owl project! No offense to owls everywhere. But why owls? Do these projects teach texture? Are we studying the order Strigiformes and then using our new found knowledge to do a John Homes Audubon lesson? In most cases I would say "no"! I think teachers are teaching owls just to make owls - they're cute and the clay ones are easy for the students to make. If you were actually studying Audubon would it be a far stretch to let your students choose their own bird subject? Would it change the lesson on texture if you did?

I know I am on my soapbox tonight and for that I apologize but...as art educators I think we have a responsibility to promote creativity in our classrooms. I cannot tell you how many times a day a student asks me "like this?" about a project I am teaching. It is not that my directions are unclear that this question is asked, rather it is because my lesson is open for choices to be made and for creativity to happen. By 2nd grade students are already uncomfortable with that concept! They want to be told what it is supposed to look like and exactly how to make something. How did this happen? Ask yourself (and I will too!) that question the next time you see your students making the proverbial "owl" in your classroom and then see if you can create narwhals instead.

Wolf Kahn

Wolf Kahn

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My second graders studied spacial concepts in the art room this week. Learning how to create depth is often a big leap for them. We used methods that included overlapping, size, placement, foreground, middle ground, background, and horizon line. I chose Wolf Kahn for this art lesson because I love his work so much and felt like his vibrant use of colors and repetition would really excite my students as well. We had fun! Here are some of our BEAUTIFUL landscapes!

Sneak Peak

Here is a little sneak peak of what is coming up in the art room over the next couple of weeks. Printmaking with 3rd, 4th, and 5th! Third grade is going to make Jasper Johns inspired collagraph prints. Fourth grade is making Day of the Dead inspired Styrofoam prints. I love printmaking with my elementary students because they love it as much as I do! Stay tuned for some student artwork!

Popcorn Clouds

There is something that just makes me happy about big giant popcorn clouds. Fall is here.

Elizabeth Murray

Elizabeth Murray, was a New York painter who reshaped Modernist abstraction into a high-spirited, cartoon-based, language of form. Her subjects often included domestic life, relationships and the nature of painting itself. My 2nd graders were very inspired by this lesson and my student teacher did an excellent job of teaching it! Here are some of our comic inspired animals.

If you would like to learn more about artist Elizabeth Murray check our some of these great resources at PBS.

Modern Mona

I have been running across a lot of Mona Lisa parodies on Pinterest lately. I cannot help myself from giggling every time I run across a new one. Here are some of my favorites! I am going to use them this year when I teach the Modern Mona Lisa lesson. Have you seen that lesson? It's a fun one!

There Was An Old Lady Who Swallowed A Crayon

There Was An Old Lady Who Swallowed A Crayon

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